2017 #INFINITI Prototype 9 @ #AlfonsoAlbaisa, First Drive First Dream

The motor produces 120 kW (148 hp) and 320 Nm (236 lb ft) of torque and driving the rear wheels, via single-speed transmission. Prototype 9 has a top speed of 170 kph (105.6 mph), and sprints from 0-to-100 kph (0-to-62 mph) in 5.5 seconds, with a maximum EV range of 20 minutes under heavy track use.
Nissan Motor Corporation and premium automotive brand Infiniti have unveiled a sleek, open-wheeled electric retro roadster prototype at the 2017 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. The car, called Prototype 9, is a celebration of Nissan Motor and Infiniti's ingenuity, artistry and craftsmanship. It represents a reimagining of a 1940s race car with time-honored production techniques employed to realize its retro design.
"Prototype 9 celebrates the tradition of ingenuity, craftsmanship and passion of our forebears at Nissan Motor Corporation, on whose shoulders we stand today. It started as a discussion: What if Infiniti had created a race car in the 1940s? If one were to imagine an open-wheeled Infiniti racer on the famous circuits of the era, such as Japan's Tamagawa Speedway, what would that look like? The sketches were stunning and the idea so compelling that we had to produce a prototype. As other departments became aware of this, they volunteered their time to create a working vehicle." Alfonso Albaisa, Senior Vice President, Global Design
Prototype 9 is emblematic of Infiniti's entrepreneurial spirit and passion for stunning design. From humble beginnings as a sketch, to the dynamic example presented at Pebble Beach, Prototype 9 has been brought to life as an after-hours endeavour by a passionate and enterprising team of employees from across the Nissan Motor Corporation.
The car is powered by a prototype electric motor and battery from Nissan's Advanced Powertrain Department. This nod to the future contrasts with the traditional materials and techniques applied for the Prototype 9's manufacture, including panels hand-beaten by a team of Takumi - Nissan Motor Corporation's master craftspeople.
"What started as an after-hours idea grew into a fully-fledged prototype; our designers and engineers were excited by the notion of creating a past vision, a nod to our origins. They volunteered their own time, more and more staff became involved. Our teams have proven skills in manufacturing, engineering, design and advanced powertrains, yet they wanted to bring their own traditional craftsmanship to the project. They made Prototype 9 a reality, a result of their ingenuity - they recognised and realised the past, powered by a future-centric electric powertrain at its heart. Prototype 9 blends modern technology and hand-crafted details paying tribute to the forebears of Infiniti." Roland Krueger, Chairman and Global President
Prototype 9 was inspired by an emerging era of Japanese motorsport. The custom-built Prince R380, which also makes its public debut at the 2017 Concours d'Elegance, broke several land speed records in 1965 before taking overall victory at the 1966 Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji Speedway. Prince Motor Company is considered to be Japan's original builder of premium automobiles, and its legacy can be traced to Infiniti Motor Company and its current model line. The R380 in Pebble Beach is the actual Japanese Grand Prix-winning car, believed to be the only surviving R380.
"We like to think that Infiniti, with its stunning design, high performance capability and forward-looking technology, shares some DNA with the Prince Motor Company, which became part of Nissan. Prototype 9 is a celebration of the artistry and ingenuity inherent in our company." Alfonso Albaisa, Senior Vice President, Global Design
Where existing and future Infiniti models adhere to the company's 'Q' and 'QX' nomenclature, Prototype 9 represents something different. Echoing the company's origins, the figure '9' is pronounced 'kyuu' in Japanese - similar to the anglicized pronunciation of the letter 'Q', which is used for all of the company's production cars.
Prototype 9: designers imagine, 'what if...?'
"We discussed the idea of 'chancing' upon an unrecognised race car, hidden away for decades in a barn, deep in the Japanese countryside. We wanted to explore what this looked like, what it would have been made of. Open-wheeled racers of the age were beautiful machines, elegant and powerful and with a wonderful purity of purpose. It's an automotive fantasy, but the notion captured our imaginations enough to put pencil to paper." Alfonso Albaisa, Senior Vice President, Global Design
The starting point for bringing Prototype 9 to life was a conceptual sketch: an interpretation of an Infiniti race car, inspired by roadsters and aircraft of the era yet moulded in new materials and advanced technology. From this moment Prototype 9's transformation from sketch to reality was inevitable.
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